Burial-vault.



B. HALL. BURIAL VAULT.

APPLIUATION FILED JUNE 27, 1908.

Patented Dec.29 .1908

' a citizen ofthe D to securemaxinium durability and strength,

WlLLIAM B. HALL, OF DUQUOIN, ILLINOIS.

' BURIAL-venu.

No. 908,253. Specification of Letters Paten-t.

Application filed June27, 1908.

Patented Dec. 2e, 1908. serial No'. 440,6in.'

T o all whom it Imay concern.'

Be it known that l., WiLLIAM B. HALL sectional dimensions than the chamber and which, like the chambers, may be square, circular or of any other suitable form, said recess terminating at its inner end in a right angular'shoulder 5. After the casket has been inserted in the chamber, the latter l inted States, residing at Duquoin, in the county of Perry and State of illinois, have invented new and useful t improvements in Burial-Vaults, of which i the following' is a specification. i This invention relates to burial vaults, l and particularly to vaults of that type i formed of concrete or like plastic material. l The object ofthe invention is to provide i a vault 'for surface or underground use in which the body portion of the vaultis formed of concrete or like plastic material reinforced sealing plate. G/corresponding in form to the chamber 4 and adapted to rest against the shoulder 5. This plate may be formed of steel or other hardened metal, andl is 'designed to be retained in position by a body of sealing material 7 and inserted to till and close the recess 4, and which preferably consists of the same material as the body of the vault.

In order to provide for the iirm binding' of the sealing material 7 in position, as well as to prevent read access to the cover plate 6 after the cham er has been sealed by any i one disposed to tamper with the vault, two sets or series of guard rods or bars 8 and 9 are employed and extend at right angles to each other across the recess, the rods of one isct extending horizontally and the rods of the other set vertically, and said rods being arranged to cross each other, as shown. In )I the present instance, each set comprises a and in which provision is made for sealing the opening in the vault through which the casket is introduced in a simple and effective manner, so as to oth hermetically seal the vault and render it as far as possible impervious to air and moisture and burg-lar prooi', the construction being,r such that the vault cannot be broken into or tampered with without givingr visual evidence of that fact.

The invention consists of thc features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described and claimed, reference beinghad to the accompanying' drawing, in which Figure. l is a front elevation of a vault pair of rods, and these rods are inserted at their ends in suitable receiving sockets 10 in for surface use provided with a plurality the walls of the recess. After the cover of receiving chambers. Fig. 2 is a lone-iplate is inserted, the bars or,rods,which are tudiual section on a line through one of the i formed of spring metal, are applied by bendehambcrs. ing,r them and sprineing them into position so Referringv to the drawing, the numeral l that their ends Wi l enter the sockets and designates the body of the vault,'\\hich may hold the rods secure.. l/Vhen the bod of be of rectangular form, as shown, or of any i cement 7 constituting the sealing medium other suitable form. 'lhc vault is molded is ap )lied to `fill the. recess 4, the rods orbars or otherwise constructid of concrete or will he iirinly and securely anchored or emother suitable plastic material adapted to bedded therein, and will thus be firmly and solidify to a hardened mass, and is prosecurely held from movement, and at the vided with one or more longitudinal rccciving' chambers opcn at the front thereof for the introduction of thc casket. The* body of theI vault is reinforced adjacent its outer surfaces and between the several chambers thereof by longitudinallyextendsaine time the plate 6 curely bound against sealing the vault chamber 2 in an air and water tight manner. l

will be firmly and seplication of the sealingr medium 7, a third vering rods or bars `3 embedded therein in the tical bracing bar 11 is preferably employed process ol' manufacture, thus increasinethe and disposed between the two ars 9, and strength and durability of the vault structhis intermediate bar is formed with an eX- ture to a material extent.

Each receiving chamber 2 is of proper length and size to receive anysuitable type of casket designed to be employed. At the front or open end of each chamber the vault is provided with ay recess 4 of greater crosspanded portion rovided with a threaded perforation 12. fter the cement 7 has been Vinserted in position, it is .compacted and forced tightly into the recess 4 so asfto fill all crevices by the use of a follower plate 13 having a centrally apertured boss 14 -fortlie pasthe shoulder 5, thus` ln order to provide for the convenient apis closed and sealed by the use of a cover or yiic sage of an operating screw 15. The innerv end of the screw is adapted to be inserted into the threaded opening 12 of the bar 11 prior to 'the application of the cement, to temporarily ix said bar thereto, and then the cement is inserted and the follower ap'-J 1 plied to the screw, on which it loosely iits. A nut 16 engages the threads of the screw and is ada ted tobe turned up thereon to engage the oss 14 and to force the follower plate toward the recess 4, whereby the sealing medium 7 will be compressed into the recess until its outer surface 1s lush with the face of the vault, whereupon the nut and follower are removed. The screw has an outer angular end 19 by which it is adapted to be grip' yped by a wrench or other tool to enable said screw to be turned out of the opening 12, and from the body of sealing material after the latter has been compacted by the follower, and the opening left by the removal of this screw may then be illed by additional cernent or in any other suitable manner.

In Fig. 1 l have shown a four-chambered surface vault in which two of the chambers are represented as being filled and sealed, and the others are prepared for sealing, and b the constructiondescribed it will be seen tliat when each chamber is sealed as stated it will be hermetically closed and rendered impervious to air or moisture, and the arrange-v ment of the reinforcing yrods in connection with the body of sealing material will render the vault strong and durable, as far as possible, in a construction of this type, burglar proof, it being apparent that the vault cannot be broken into or tam ered with without giving visual evidence o that fact.

lt will of course be understood thatthe surface vault constructed in the manner specified may be provided with but a single chamber for individual use, or with any c e sired number of chambers. The same construction may be applied to a vault having one or more chambers and ada )ted for underground use or to be incloserl in an ordinary grave, it being preferable, however, in a vault designed for underground use to have the recesses or entrances tothe chambers disposed in the top and extending .horizontally the full lengthof the chambers. The sealing means, however, will be of the same type and applied in the saine manner.

It is to be understood thatthe underground vault may be molded before it is placed in the grave, or molded within the grave, and that the receiving opening may be in the top, at one side, or at either end. ln the intended forms of the invention, however, the recess or shoulder is to be formed around the opening. After the casket has been inserted, the cover or sealing plate is placed inthe receivingr recess against the shoulder and is secured in position by the insertion of a sealing material in therecess, which sealing material upon solidifying will both fasten the plate in position and close the recess7 thus sealing the latter hermetically against the entrance of air or moisture.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is 1. A concrete vault rovided with a receiving .chamber and raving a recess of greater dimensions than the said chamber at the entrance end thereof, and also provided, wlth a shoulder at the inner end of the recess,

the walls of the recess being formed with sockets. a cover plate resting against said shoulder,guard bars extending at an angle to each other across the chamber in front of the cover platea'nd seated at their ends in said sockets in thewalls ofthe recess, and a body of plastic sealing material inserted in said recess and covering and conning said plate andbars. y

2. A concrete vault provided with a re ceiving chamber and havingv a recess at the entrance end thereof, saidl recess being of greater cross-sectional dimensions than the chamber and havin'ga Lslhoulder at its inner end, a cover plate resting against said-shoulder, guard bars extending across and secured inthe walls of the recess, one of said apparatus, and a plastic body of sea ing material inserted in said recess and confining said guard bars, said material adapted to be compacted in the recess by the said compressing apparatus,

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence oftwo witnesses.

`v WlLLIAM B. HALL. Witnesses:

Lizzin HALL, GUssIE HALL.

vbars being provided with means for tempovrarily holding` an element of a compression 

